Prop or brace



Apr. 17, 1923. 1,452,329

P. UTTER ET AL PROP OR BRA GE Filed July 25 1921 A TTORNEX Patented Apr. 17, 1923.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PHIL UTTIER AND PAUL W. SGHENCK, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

PROP 0R BRACE.

Application filed Jul 25, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, PHIL UTTE-R and PAUL WV. SoHnNoK, citizens of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of Califor' nia, have jointly invented new and useful Improvements in Props or Braces, of which the following is a specification.

; This invention relates to props or braces, and particularly to a prop or brace which may be readily collapsed or extended into position of use at the will of its user.

In practicing the invention we provide two arms, one of which is bent at one end so as to form a loop, while the other arm is bent in the form of a doublecurve, the portion between the double curve being confined by the loop. A sliding sleeve is received upon one of said arms and is adapted to engage or be received upon one of the other lengths of the other arm. Thus the arms may be locked into either a position'of extension by the sleeve engaging portions of said arms, or in a collapsed locked position.

An invention of this type is applicable to a variety of purposes and uses, one use in particular being a prop for ducks. After a duck has been shot a prop may be placed under the ducks bill or through the ducks body to hold the duck in an upright position so that itgmay be used a deco-y for other ducks. Obviously a prop or brace of this type could be utilized for various purposes in building construction or for folding and collapsible devices.

The invention has for further objects the provision of an improved prop or brace which will be superior in. point of relative simplicity and inexpensiveness, taken in conjunction with utility, durability and general efiiciency and serviceability. WVith the above and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel and useful provision, formation, construction, combination, association and inter-relation of parts, members and features, as illustrated in some of its embodiments in the accompanying drawing, described in the following statement, and finally pointed out with particularity in the claims.

In'the drawing:

Figure 1 illustrates one embodiment of our improved prop or brace associated with and maintaining a duck in upright position,

Serial No. 487,427.

which duck can be used as a decoy for other ducks; I

Figure 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of one form of prop or brace, the same being in an extended position;

Figure 3 illustrates the prop or brace shown in Figure 2,but in a collapsed position;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of a modification of the prop or brace, said prop or brace being in extended position;

Figure 5 illustrates the prop or brace shown in Figure 1 in a collapsed position;

Figure 6 is a further modification of the prop or brace, same being in extended position; and,

Figure 7 shows the prop or brace of Figure 6 in a collapsed position.

Corresponding parts in all the figures are designated by the same reference characters.

Referring with particularity to the drawing, and to Figures 2 and 3 the prop or brace in its entirety is designated as A, and of which 1 and 2 arethe arm members and 8 a sliding sleeve. The arm 1. is provided with anoppositely curved portion a so as to form two lengths, one of which as 5 is shorter than the length 6. The arm 2 is bent to form a loop orv closed eye 7 which eye encloses the portion included between the double curved portion'of the/arm 1, as

shown at 8. The sleeve 3 is in the form of a figure 8 so as to tightly engage the arms 1 and 2. As shown the sleeve 3 may slide upon the arm 2 and then engage the short length 5 of the arm 1, as shown in Figure 2. This will permit the arms 1 and 2 to be in an extended position, and the sleeve 3, due to its formation, will not slip from the arm and will maintain the arms in such extended position. Likewise the portion included between the double curved portion of the arm 1 in conjunction with the eye-7 will act as a brace, so as to help relieve stress or strain from the sleeve 3. In Figure 3 the sleeve has been removed from the length 5 of the arm 1 and the arm 1 rotated and the sleeve 3 moved sufiic-iently along the arm 2 to a point where it may slide upon the arm 1, as shown at 9, to hold said arms in collapsed position. To prevent loss of the sleeve from the arm 2 we upset the arm 2 at one end, as shown at 10. Thus it will be the portion 18.

seen that the sleeve 3 is at all times carried by the arm 2.

In Figures 1 and 5 we have shown a first modification of the prop or brace which is designated in its entirety as B. The modification in particular refers to the method of holding the arms 11 and 12 in either collapsed or extended position. lVe provide a member 13 having two rolled or returned edge portions, as shown at 14 and 15, one of which returned portions as 14 confines a portion of the arm 11, while the other as 15 encloses a short length arm 16. The portions 14 and 15 are in parallel spaced relation to each other. One end of said member 13, as at 17, is provided with a returned or rolled portion 18. The arm 12 has an angularly bent end 19 which is confined wlthin A sleeve member 20 is adapted to slide upon the arm 11 and to engage, when desired, the arm 16. Said sleeve consists of a short plate having tWo rolled end portions as 21 and 22. When the arms 11 and 12 are in extended position as shown in Figure 1, the arm 12 will be received between the portions 1 1 and 15 and bear against a Webbing or plate 23 of the member 13. This forms one means for preventing movement of the arm 12 in the direction of the webbing, while the sleeve 20 by engaging the arm 16 will prevent movement of the arm 12 in the opposite direction. It will thus be seen that the arm 12 is confined in four directions, that is, between the plate or webbing 23, the sleeve 20, and themembers 14 and 15. The arm 11 is upset at one end as at 24:, so as to prevent loss of the sleeve from. said arm. By removing the sleeve 20 from the arm 16 the arm 12 may readily be rotated within the member 18 so as to collapse said arms.

In Figure 6 we have illustrated a second modification designated as C, and in which the arms are designated as 25 and 26. The arm 26 is formed with a looped portion 27,

, while the arm 25 is formed with a returnedly curved end portion 28. A sliding sleeve 29 is adapted to confine three lengths of said arms 25 and 26 when the arms are in extended position, as shown in Figure 6, and likewise three lengths when the arms are in a collapsed position, as shown in Figure 7. In particular the sleeve 29 engages the portion 28, as well as the portion as 30, of the arm 25. The looped portion 27 encloses the bight included between the portions 28 and 30. A short extension 31 of the arm 26 after making the loop as 27, is adapted to be received in a space confined by the returnedly curved end portions of the arm 25 and by the sleeve 29. Thus the arms 25 and26 are securely locked in such extended position. In Figure 7 upon releasing the sleeve from its position shown in Figure 6, the arm members may be rotated so as to be in what is termed a collapsed position, whereupon the sleeve may again be brought so as to engage both arms and the short length 28 in order to maintain said arms in collapsed position.

It is obvious that many modifications and changes may be made in the particular method of providing a sliding sleeve with relation to two arms so that the arms may be maintained in an extended position with relation to each other, or in a collapsed position, and locked whether in said collapsed or extended position, in departure from the particular description and showing of the accompanying drawing, in adapting the invention to varying conditions and requirements of use and service, without departing from the true spirit of the invention.

Having thus disclosed our invention, we claim and desire to secure by LettersPatent:

1. A prop or brace adapted to be collapsed or extended into position of service, said plrop or brace including a plurality of incependent arm members loosely joined together, there being means carried by certain of the arm members for engaging the next adjacent arm member to maintain said arm members in locked alignment; said means including a sleeve member adapted to frictionally engage said arm members, and one of said arms being formed with means to prevent withdrawal of said friction element from one of said arms.

2. A prop or brace, including a member provided with a double bent portion, there being a second member formed with a loop at one end thereof engaging a portion of said arm at the double bent ortion, and means slidable upon said secon named arm and adapted to engage said first named arm for maintaining said arms in extended locked osition or in collapsed position.

3. A prop or brace, including a member provided with a double bent portion, there being a second member formed with a loop at one end thereof engaging a portion of said arm at the double bent portion, and means slidable upon said second named arm and adapted to engage said first named arm for maintaining said arms in extended locked position or in collapsed position; said means including a sleeve member; there being means on said second named arm for preventing withdrawal of said sleeve from said arm.

4:. A prop or brace including a member formed with a bent portion, a second member formed with a loop encircling the bent portion of said first member, whereby said members are pivoted together at one end, and means for engaging the pivoted ends'of said members to lock said members in extended position and for engaging the other ends of said members to lock said members in collapsed position.

5. A prop r brace including a member formed with a bent portion, a second member formed with a loop encircling the bent portion of said first member, whereby said 5 members are pivoted together at one end, and a sleeve shdabiy mounted on one of said members for engaging the pivoted ends of said members to lock them in extended position and for engaging the other ends of said members to lock them in collapsed position. 10 In testimony whereof, we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

PHIL UTTER. PAUL W. SCHENCK. Witnesses:

JOHN D. Hour), RAYMOND IvEs BLAKESLEE. 

